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Editorial

A jumbo conundrum

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Thursday 27th August, 2020

Indian Congress leader Sonia Gandhi has outfoxed a group of party rebels who reportedly strove to oust her. She has had herself appointed the Congress Interim Leader pending a party overhaul. She seems to have taken a leaf out of UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe’s book. Having thus battened down the hatches, both Sonia and Ranil are waiting for political storms to blow over. They are adept at political escapology.

Many are those who aspire to the post of UNP leader. Some of them have tossed their hats in the ring, and prominent among them is former Speaker Karu Jayasuriya, who endeared himself to average UNPers by standing up to President Maithripala Sirisena and Mahinda Rajapaksa and foiling their attempt to capture power in Parliament, in late 2018. He is also the darling of the western members of the international community and a section of the Maha Sangha.

Wickremesinghe has reportedly said Jayasuriya, who is not a member of the UNP Working Committee, cannot be the party leader. Several prominent Buddhist monks are cranking up pressure on Wickremesinghe to appoint Jayasuriya the party leader. Theirs is an exercise in futility, we reckon.

One may recall that four Mahanayake Theras jointly wrote to Wickremesinghe, in December 2011, urging him to settle the UNP’s leadership struggle by appointing Jayasuriya the party leader. The signatories to the letter were Mahanayake of the Malwatte Chapter Most Ven. Tibbotuwawe Sri Siddhartha Thera, Mahanayake of the Asgiriya Chapter Most Ven. Udugama Rathanapala Buddharakkhitha Thera, Mahanayake of the Ramanna Chapter Most Ven. Weveldeniya Madhalankkara Thera and Mahanayake of the Amarapura Chapter Most Ven. Dauldena Gnanissara Thera. But Wickremesinghe did not accede to their request. (However, he, to his credit, brought down the mighty Rajapaksa government and became the Prime Minister four years later.) It is therefore highly unlikely that Wickremesinghe will heed appeals from lesser monks.

Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa’s silence is puzzling. With 54 SJB MPs and the majority of the UNP’s rank and file on his side, he is now in a position to smash through the weakened defences of Wickremesinghe, unlike in the past. In fact, that is what the SJB kept saying before the recent general election. Its heavyweights vowed to march on Sirikotha and get rid of the Ranil faction, first thing after the polls. Why are they holding back? Is Sajith waiting till the UNP rolls out the red carpet for him? One of his trusted lieutenants, MP Nalin Bandara Jayamaha, has said the UNP should stop looking for ‘antiques’ (meaning aged politicians) to lead it as the rightful heir to its leadership is in the SJB.

Sajith is apparently in two minds. His party, the SJB, is strong and the UNP is lying supine with no prospect of regaining its former self in the foreseeable future. But a seasoned politician, Sajith cannot be unaware of the political reality. The SJB has fared reasonably well electorally as a newly formed party, but it will have its work cut out to keep its support base intact in case of the revival and revitalisation of the UNP under a new leader; it will lose a sizeable chunk of its vote bank to the UNP in such an eventuality. At the recent parliamentary polls, a majority of traditional supporters of the UNP voted for the SJB as they wanted to punish the UNP leadership and not the party; many of those who did so are likely to back the UNP again under a new leader.

Sajith has said it took a couple of years for the SLPP to emerge a formidable political force, but the SJB has done so within a couple of months. However, the fact remains that the SLPP has become an established political party with a solid vote bank, and the SLFP has chosen to play second fiddle to it because of the former’s popular and strong leadership and strength. The SLFP would have been in the same predicament as the UNP if it had gone it alone at the parliamentary polls instead of riding piggyback on the SLPP. The SLPP has consolidated its power by winning three elections in a row—local government, presidential and parliamentary—with huge majorities. The same cannot be said of the SJB. Most of all, the UNP cannot be written off.

Sajith must be finding it difficult to make up his mind. But he will have to decide soon.



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Editorial

The return of Trump

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Readers who had the opportunity of watching the YouTube report of the concession speech of Kamala Harris, defeated by Donald Trump at the Nov. 5 U.S. Presidential election, would have been treated to an exceptional performance by an exceptional woman, her voice hoarse from the whirlwind 13-week campaign during which she sought what is arguably the world’s most powerful job. Immaculately dressed and groomed as she always was during her term as Vice President to Joe Biden as well as during the campaign, she delivered a rousing speech at her Washington alma mater, Howard University, that moved many listeners, particularly young people to tears. She declared: “While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign. Hear me when I say the lights of America’s promise will always burn bright, as long as we never give up.”

Commentators and pollsters using the most advanced technology available were unanimous that the race was too tight to call. But they were terribly wrong though the authoritative The Economist has ex post facto pronounced Trump’s victory “no fluke.” Dead heat was the common prediction as the first Tuesday in November, four years after the last U.S. presidential election when Joe Biden defeated Trump decisively, approached. The American constitution mandates the holding of a presidential election on the first Tuesday in November every four years, an ironclad requirement. Both contenders had loyal, sometimes fanatical support with the liberal establishment and many more strongly backing Harris while the super rich led by billionaire Elon Musk threw their weight behind Trump. The winner also drew the support of those labeled “white supremacists” while the loser had to contend with the negative economic effect during the early years of the Biden administration not yet overcome.

Trump narrowly escaped death when a gunshot fired by a sniper from a rooftop grazed his right ear during the election campaign. The gunman was shot dead but the head of the U.S. Secret Service, Kimberly Cheatle, was forced to resign admitting a massive security failure. A second attempt some weeks later at a Florida golf course where Trump was playing was aborted with no damage done. The dangerously close shooting incident which united Trump’s supporters was effectively used by his campaign to maximum effect.

Trump won the election with a comfortable majority in the Electoral College as well as on the popular vote. This was unlike 2016 when he defeated Hillary Clinton in the Electoral College while losing the popular vote, something that had happened only once before in recent times (Al Gore vs. George. W. Bush in 2000). But it was different this time round and Trump’s victory at both the Electoral College and on the popular vote was convincing despite the heavy artillery he had to fight. These included dozens of indictments and a conviction in the courts for which he awaits sentence, two impeachment resolutions and barrels of sleaze flung at him. His rambling unfocused style of speech, ‘I know best’ attitude and vulgarity were all factors that weighed heavily against him. Despite Harris’ good looks and attractive demeanor, oratorical skills and much more, plus the wide endorsement of liberal America, she was roundly defeated by a rival strongly opposed by much of the American media with the exception of Fox News that threw considerable weight behind the Trump campaign.

The Democrats may have paid a price for Harris’ late entry to the race. Despite strident demands by his party and friends to stand down, the 81-year old Biden insisted on seeking re-election with Vice-President Kamala Harris as his running mate. As senator from California, Harris herself had sought the Democratic ticket for 2020 but stood down citing lack of funds. Candidate Biden named her his running mate and carried that election. But with the 2024 campaign taking off, Biden who would have been 85-years old at the end of a second term, was forced to stand down as his cognitive degeneration became increasingly visible even during a debate with his rival Donald Trump. Thus Kamala Harris, without the benefit of a primary of the Democratic Party, became its candidate for the just concluded election.

Harris scored brownie points in her concession speech saying that there will be a peaceful transition unlike four years ago when Trump, claiming that the election was “stolen” had his supporters march on Capitol Hill. His own Vice-President Mike Pence refused to be bludgeoned by his boss to refuse to certify the 2020 election result. In contrast, Harris as incumbent President of the Senate will certify these results in January enabling Donald Trump’s return to the White House. His election will affect people globally, wherever they may live. The Economist has called Trump “the most consequential American president since Frankly. D. Roosevelt.” How the self-proclaimed anti-war president will handle global conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East are questions that hang tantalizingly over the whole world.

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Editorial

Power of millers

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Saturday 9th November, 2024

Large-scale rice millers, wholesalers and retailers continue to flout consumer protection laws with impunity. All varieties of rice are sold above the maximum retail prices, and some of them are in short supply. The Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA), true to form, trots out various lame excuses for its inability to prevent hoarding and the exploitation of the public.

Successive governments have failed to serve the interests of consumers vis-à-vis the rice Mafia, which always has the last laugh. In fact, they have baulked at taking on the big-time millers and wholesalers despite their braggadocio.

The JVP-led NPP, too, came to power, making a host of promises, the prominent among them being its pledge to make the IMF bend to its will and renegotiate the ongoing bailout programme. The IMF is far from tamed, and, worse, the government has had to touch its forelock before the millers’ Mafia.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake himself has said a cartel of millers has created an artificial shortage of rice and jacked up prices. He has not only identified the problem properly but also threatened stringent action against the hoarders of rice, besides promising to ensure that the Paddy Marketing Board (PMD) will purchase more paddy and maintain buffer stocks to stabilise the prices of rice.

It is everyone’s fervent wish that President Dissanayake will be able to fulfil his promise to make rice, especially the varieties thereof consumed by the ordinary people, freely available at reasonable prices. However, the question is whether the state-owned warehouses have the capacity to hold enough paddy stocks to stabilise prices. One hopes that paddy will not be stored in airports again the way the Yahapalana government did.

What needs to be done urgently is to trace and confiscate the illegally hoarded rice. This however will be an uphill task, given the rice millers’ political connections and the fact that many politicians and their parties have benefited from the millers’ largesse.

Some CAA officials were recently seen on television visiting the warehouse complexes belonging to the members of the millers’ Mafia and asking questions. They should not be so naïve as to think the millers will tell them the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth about paddy stocks. They must find out where the illegally hoarded paddy is kept and take legal action.

Whenever pressure mounts on the government in power to get tough with the large-scale millers, they float various stories to deflect the blame for rice shortages. An attempt is now being made in some quarters to lay the blame for the current shortage of ‘nadu’ rice solely at the feet of some brewers, who are accused of using rice to manufacture beer. This allegation must be probed, but investigations must continue to find out the stocks of rice held by the millers’ Mafia, which must not be allowed to get away with its illegal practices by claiming that the people cannot buy rice at the maximum retail prices to eat because they ‘drink’ it in the form of beer.

The candidates who contested the September presidential race have submitted their campaign expense reports. They must be made to reveal whether they have received any funds from the wealthy rice millers, who have politicians eating out of the palms of their hands while exploiting consumers and farmers alike.

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Editorial

Trump’s comeback

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Friday 8th November, 2024

Donald Trump has done the impossible. He has made a triumphant return to the White House against all odds. Even his ardent loyalists may not have expected him to secure a non-consecutive term like Grover Cleveland, when he refused to concede defeat following Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election, which, he claimed, had been stolen, and went on to instigate his backers to rebel. His opponents said he had cooked his goose.

Trump, impeached twice, incurred much public opprobrium after his defeat. It was widely thought that his felony conviction in May would seal his fate as a presidential candidate. But nothing could stop him—not even an assassin’s bullet. He has been elected to the White House as a convicted felon! His sentencing is scheduled for 26 Nov., but it is very likely to be delayed either indefinitely or for four years. Other criminal cases against him will be closed. Thus, if he had not been able to re-enter the White House, he would have had to go to prison!

World leaders are falling over themselves to congratulate President elect Trump. They are saying nice things about him fawningly. The irony of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake congratulating Trump may not have been lost on keen political observers. Trump supporters marched on the US Capitol in 2021, and the following year a mob led by Dissanayake’s party, the JVP, tried to capture the parliament of Sri Lanka, albeit in vain. Both instances of rioting amounted to attacks on democracy and the rule of law, but Dissanayake and Trump have been elevated to the highest positions in their countries!

Trump’s second term is very likely to upend many US policies. Speculation is rife that he will order the deportation of immigrants, introduce import restrictions through tariff hikes, and deep-six key climate-related regulations. He is also expected to give the US education and health systems a radical shake-up. Protectionist trade policies of Trump, and his actions to create more jobs for Americans in the US itself are bound to adversely impact other economies. This is something the Sri Lankan leaders should take cognisance of; they would do better to have contingency plans ready in case of what is feared coming to pass.

Trump’s promise in his victory speech that there will be no wars for four years under his presidency must have struck a responsive chord with all peace lovers across the globe. If there is anything genuine about Trump, it is his commitment to creating a world without wars. However, the Washington-based hawks that thrive on the arms industry powered by the blood and tears of hapless victims of armed conflicts will not take kindly to his anti-war crusade. Whether the 47th POTUS will be able to prevail over the merchants of death remains to be seen.

Resolving the escalating Middle East conflict will be one of the biggest challenges for Trump. He says he will adopt a different approach to conflict resolution. President Joe Biden has the blood of Palestinians on his hands; the Democrats are thought to have a soft corner for Palestinians, but the Biden administration has been extremely generous in providing military assistance to Israel, which is destroying Palestinian lives. The Democrats find themselves in a contradiction. So do the Republicans, who are openly supportive of Israel. Trump is a true friend of the Jewish state, but he will not support wars. So, the Trump win could prove disadvantageous to the Netanyahu government, whose belligerence knows no bounds.

If it is peace in the Middle East that Trump seeks, he will be left with no alternative but to have a come-to-Jesus talk with Netanyahu, who is determined to reduce the entire Gaza strip to rubble and has apparently bitten off more than he can chew by opening several fronts. He will also have to pressure outfits such as Hamas and Hezbollah to agree to a peaceful solution.

Trump makes no bones about his antipathy towards NATO, which he has called a huge drain on US resources. He is likely to push for a ceasefire in Ukraine, but where to draw a line of control is going to be a big problem because Russians have captured swathes of land in Ukraine. The Ukraine invasion has not gone the way Vladimir Putin expected, and there is no way Volodymyr Zelensky can defeat Russia in spite of being backed by NATO. So, chances are that Trump will succeed in having the two sides agree to a ceasefire, which is the need of the hour.

Whether the world, or at least the US, will be a better place during Trump’s second term, one may not know, but his presidency surely won’t be worse than Biden’s. One can only keep one’s fingers crossed.

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